Key clinical point: Expression of immunity-related genes can predict lymphoma overall survival and prognosis.

Major finding: PD-1 and FOXP3 genes were up regulated and over expressed in advanced cases (stage III and IV) with significant positive correlation with each other.

Study details: Fifty patients with DLBCL and 50 sex- and age-matched healthy subjects were assessed.

Disclosures: The authors reported that they had no conflicts of interest.

Commentary

“A better understanding of the role of the immune system in the pathogenesis of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) would be helpful for prognostic and therapeutic purposes. Drs. Elhelbawy et al collected blood from patients with DLBCL and normal age-matched controls and assessed expression of five genes (PD-1, FOXP3, GrA, GrB and CD11c) thought to be involved in immune system response via tumor microenvironment. The five genes were expressed at higher levels in patients with DLBCL compared to controls. Expression of PD-1, Cd11c, and FOXP3 was higher in advanced stage (III-IV) DLBCL patients compared to early stage (I-II). While these results are of interest, the study investigated only 50 DLBCL patients and therefore requires additional validation before strong conclusions can be made.”

Sarah Rutherford, MD

Assistant Professor of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medicine